AGEIA Launches First Dedicated Physics Processing Card

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=1377

AGEIA's new PhysX cards will be available starting in May


AGEIA is entering new territory with its new Physics Processing Unit (PPU).
The company is hoping to do for the world of phyics what 3dfx did for 3D
graphics 10 years ago. The new add-in board will be available from leading
board manufacturers including ASUS and BFG beginning in May of 2006. AGEIA
is also touting design wins from the leading enthusiast-level PC
manufacturers in the industry. The company claims:


AGEIA is charting new territory by bringing dedicated physics hardware to
market that delivers the real-time physics gameplay that gamers and
developers alike have been clamoring for," said Manju Hegde, CEO at AGEIA.
"With the PhysX accelerator board in these new PCs from Dell, Alienware and
Falcon Northwest, gamers now have future-proof systems for a fast-growing
library of great games that exploit their power.

The initial cards will be available in PCI format with 128MB of onboard
GDDR3 memory. Hopefully, PCIe versions are earmarked for the future seeing
as how PCI is on its way out.

AGEIA is confident that its PhysX processor will enhance the user experience
in the following situations:


a.. Explosions with dust, debris and shrapnel that cause collateral damage
b.. Characters with joints, convexes and other complex geometry that
enable realistic motion
c.. Spectacular new weapons with unpredictable effects
d.. Lush foliage that bends and sways when brushed against by the player
or other characters or objects
e.. Dense smoke and fog that ooze naturally around moving objects
f.. Fluids that ebb and flow, drip, or spray naturally with physical
characteristics dependent on their viscosity
g.. Cloth that drapes, flows, tears and billows depending on where it is
placed and the environment
This latest announcement means that AGEIA will be competing head to head
with NVIDIA and Havok in the realm of physics processing. AGEIA is going
with a dedicated card while NVIDIA and Havok are offloading some of the
physics calculations to a single GPU in an SLI configuration. Each comes
with its own set of advantages and disadvantages so it will be interesting
to see which solution (if any) becomes the norm for future gaming systems.


In a recent announcement from AGEIA, the company claimed NCSoft will be one
of the largest supporters of PhysX, with support for the engine in City of
Villians and other upcoming titles.

For more information on AGEIA's new PhysX processors, you can read previews
from Hot Hardware and PC Perspective.

"rms" > wrote in
:

> http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=1377
>
> AGEIA's new PhysX cards will be available starting in May

I know West Racing was looking at these types of cards, but is there any
sim racing product out there right now, or in the near future that can take
advantage of this physics accelerator?
I love the concept, I just wonder if this the equivalent of the 1Mb S3
Savage 3d card or the 3DFX? Can you imagine RBR with accerated dirt being
flung every-which-way? Time will tell if our current generation of sims
can make use of this.

dave henrie

"Dave Henrie" > wrote in message
. 97.136...

> I know West Racing was looking at these types of cards,

West Racing? Whatever happened to them?

Or Doug Ellison, the guy "in the know" that gaurantee'd Racing Legends was
OTW.

Did he join Y2KRick in the bunker?

"Tony Jester" > wrote in message news:nrFUf.57
> West Racing? Whatever happened to them?
>
>